Wondering if anyone else has dealt with significant IT band issues.  I injured myself this January after taking some time off from running (about three months) due to a difficult pregnancy followed by a miscarriage.  Admittedly I was deconditioned, but I started back really easily and almost immediately had issues.  Seen by my doc, tried rest/ice/anti-inflammatories, then on to PT in March were I was prescribed stretching and strengthening exercises for home and seen three days a week for manual therapy/US therapy and electrical stimulation.  Have been strictly faithful with my home program but every time I get the pain under control and am instructed to run I can't go more than a mile without problems, and then the pain lasts for a week or more.  I miss running but I'm starting to feel like this is not going to go away.  Any suggestions out there?

• Currently 4.0/5 Stars.

Tags: injury, injury recovery, knee pain

This is great info and I am glad to see that after your long, hard battle you are back up and running. I so can't believe that your PT never took a look at your biomechanics. I too was "re-trained" with My therapist Jeff Waldberg video taping me, then standing right next to me on the treadmill instructing me all the way. I can still hear his words some mornings when I feel myself falling out of proper form. All Traxees listen up! If your "running doc" has never seen you run - a warning bell should go off. Posted by: bmoore on Sep 08, 2011 at 03:22 PM

So it's been almost a year since I made this post - a lot has happened. Picked up some info I hope is helpful to those with similar injuries. Long story short I quit PT, went to ortho, had a steroid injection (ouch), not really helpful long term, started PT at a different office/therapist, and here's the biggie: he actually put me on the treadmill and watched me run! I was horrified when I watched the video - so much unnecessary movement, bad form/gait, you name it. Went through about 6 months of PT again, and had much better luck; he put me on the treadmill and watched me run EVERY TIME I went, adjusted my home program subtly and often. Have been out for about 2 months and am up to running 3 miles three times weekly, will be running a 5k with my sister this month. My first PT never actually watched me running, which was the root of all my problems. Also, when you limit yourself to the treadmill you lose a lot of strength in your quads because you don't need them when the ground moves for you. His take home advice for me: 1. Always combine running with rest periods (aim for running 3-4 days a week) 2. Muscle strength is mandatory; don't limit yourself to running alone 3. Respect your body and your pain equally-listen to both Kind of common sense, but hopefully helpful. Happy running! Posted by: hummingbird756 on Sep 07, 2011 at 09:03 AM

Aack! The insurance thing is enough to make you crazy. Well, like you said, you have learned a lot about how to take care of your injury, but I know how frustrating this is. The mental thing is the worst - the loss of confidence and the sense that its never going to get any better. Right now I am feeling that way too. I actually have never heard of those pain patches - pretty interesting delivering the anti-inflammatory right to the injury. When I had this injury, my leg literally collapsed underneath me and I couldn't bend my knee at all. I was walking around like Lurch for weeks. What a pisser! Posted by: bmoore on Sep 27, 2010 at 06:16 PM

Getting up and going to the gym is about the only thing I can do, and my PT has me on a program for strengthening my lower body: squats with the bar, hip flex/ext/abd/add, pelvic tilts, and abs, and the bike, plus I do the kettel bell and yoga at home. I realized though that my PT program is down to three days a week at the gym, and I wasn't stretching everyday anymore, so I went back to that, and I think it's helping a little bit. I also have these pain patches that my doctor prescribed me that are actually impregnated with a motrin-like drug, and you put it on for 12 hours over the most sore area. Those help some. I'm down to two or three PT visits left for the year because of my insurance, so I'm going to be on my own with this a bit more than I was, but I think at least now I understand my injury better. We'll see........... Posted by: hummingbird756 on Sep 27, 2010 at 08:15 AM

@hummingbird It sounds like you are doing all the right things. Oh! I know how hard this is. Having a great PT and supportive family and friends is so helpful as you go through this. Ha! My husband is really supportive- he doesn't want to be around me when I can't run! ;-) It WILL come, your body will heal. My PT had me working out on a stair-stepper and then a treadmill to keep at least some of my aerobic conditioning up while I was down. RU doing anything in the gym at this point? It can really help with the depression too. Posted by: bmoore on Sep 22, 2010 at 01:54 PM

Thanks so much for your comments! It is true at times it is easy to feel alone with an injury. I have actually been using the roller, and I got new shoes pretty soon after I started having problems (I'm actually a supinator, not that common apparently) but I have not tried a heel lift, so I'll look into that. I have come to realize through this experience that there is a lesson in all of this for me, greater even than working through loss and grief, or understanding my body, or even acceptance of having an injury. I have had great support from my PT and family, so I know it will come.......eventually. Thanks for your kind words. Posted by: hummingbird756 on Sep 22, 2010 at 01:12 PM

OK my hummingbird friend. This is something I definitely know a lot about. I was down for full 8 months with ITB and I know how painful and frustrating it is. If you want to follow my frustration, take a look at my posts here on Traxee from January of 2009. Even now, when I start running above 10 miles I get that painful achey feeling...though I can still run. Here are two things that you didn't mention in your post that I found really helped me once I started healing and got back on the road: 1) Heel lift in your shoe (injured leg) this is something you might want to ask your PT about - its good for people whose injury is fundamentally about their biomechanics when they run. I found it really eased the discomfort while running. 2) The roller. Now, likely your PT is not going to like the idea of you using a foam roller, but I am telling you it worked for me and I still use it. It's really painful at first, but keep at it. It breaks up the adhesions as you heal and provides stimulation and blood flow to the injured area. 3) New shoes. I had been wearing neutral shoes for years and found that by switching running shoes to a motion control shoe specifically for overpronators that I was able to run pain free. Also, be aware that hormone levels can REALLY effect internal inflammation and your body's ability to heal. There are numerous studies showing that women are more prone to injury (specifically joint related) at certain times of the month. Your body has been through an awful lot (I know - I also had a miscarriage) - so go easy on yourself. Now, I know all this doesn't alleviate the frustration you feel right now but tit is a rare case in which you find that you can't ever get back to running. Patience my dear, patience. You'll get your mojo back. There is a lot of information you can search on in Traxee regarding this injury (mainly because I was obsessed by it for a long time ;-). Also, take a look at this post about the foam roller: http://www.traxee.com/posts/935-treatment-for-itb-syndrome-use-of-the-foam-roller ... and let us know how you are doing. Posted by: bmoore on Sep 22, 2010 at 12:16 PM